At Lutheran Family and Children’s Services of Missouri, we are proud to provide low-cost, high-quality mental health counseling and psychiatry services to children and families across the state. While these services are essential for addressing a wide range of mental health challenges, many people may not fully understand the difference between therapy and psychiatry. Knowing which professional to turn to when your child is experiencing a mental health issue is crucial for getting the right support at the right time. This guide will help you better understand these distinct yet complementary approaches to mental health care.

Counseling: A Therapeutic Approach

Mental health counseling focuses on addressing emotional, social, and behavioral concerns through talk therapy. Licensed therapists, counselors, or social workers provide counseling to help individuals understand their emotions, develop coping strategies, and improve relationships. Common therapeutic techniques include Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), EMDR, Play Therapy, and Family Counseling.

Counseling is ideal for addressing issues such as Anxiety, Depression, Trauma, Stress Management, Relationship Challenges, Disruptive Behaviors and Autism Spectrum Disorders. Sessions are typically held weekly or bi-weekly, fostering a continuous, supportive relationship between the counselor and the client. This process helps clients navigate life’s challenges and build resilience over time.

At LFCS, our counseling services are tailored to children and families’ unique needs, ensuring evidence-based care that promotes growth and healing. Learn more here.

Psychiatry: A Medical Perspective

Psychiatry focuses on the medical evaluation and treatment of mental health disorders. Psychiatrists are medical doctors who specialize in diagnosing and treating mental health conditions, often through medication management and other medical interventions.

Psychiatry is particularly effective for managing conditions such as ADHD, Depression, Bipolar Disorder, Adjustment Disorder, Psychotic Symptoms, and Anxiety. Psychiatrists conduct comprehensive evaluations and develop personalized treatment plans, which may include prescribing medications to stabilize symptoms. Follow-up sessions are typically less frequent than counseling sessions and focus on reviewing and adjusting treatment as needed.

LFCS psychiatry services provide children and adolescents with access to specialized care, including evaluations, medication management, and care planning. Learn more here.

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April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month. At LFCS, we want to talk about this public health issue and what we can do to address it.

Here are just a few of the staggering statistics:

• One in 4 children experience some form of child abuse or neglect in their lifetimes.
• Thirty-two Missouri children died from abuse or neglect in 2017, 70% of whom were two years old or younger.
• Parents, stepparents or other primary caretakers account for the majority of perpetrators in child abuse and neglect cases.
• Poverty, on-going community violence, and weak connections between neighbors are related to a higher risk for child abuse and neglect
• The estimated average lifetime cost per victim of nonfatal child abuse and neglect was $210,012
• The total lifetime economic burden resulting from new cases of fatal and nonfatal child abuse and neglect is $124 billion

LFCS provides several areas of support to prevent child abuse and neglect as well as manages the social and behavioral ramifications of cases that were not prevented. We do so through our two pillars of service: Foster Care and Family Services & Behavioral Health and Community Prevention Services.

Foster Care and Family Services programs provide education to parents and care for children to decrease the risk of child abuse or neglect. Services include:

• Respite Foster Care
• Foster Care Case Management
• Pregnancy and Parenting Services
• Home Visitation

Behavioral Health and Community Prevention Services programs are available in 15 offices statewide on a sliding fee scale, as well as 60 schools in eight Districts across the St. Louis area. Services include:

• Counseling
• Child Psychiatry
• STEP-UP, a youth development program

If you find yourself in need of any of the above services, please contact LFCS. Together we can save children and families in Missouri.

April 6, 2018 is Wear Blue Day. Show your support and help spread awareness by wearing blue. Take a photo and share it on the social media with #GreatChildhoods and tag @LFCSMO.

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8am – Morning staff meeting. Hear updates on what has happened since the last time you were at school.  Hear updates on what is happening today.  On the way out the door, a teacher requests that you come by her class to talk about some concerns she has.

8:15am – Check emails, get organized for day. Map out and review your game plan and which students you hope to be able to see.  Several teachers stop by to let you know about new concerns with students.

8:20am – Greet energetic kids as they come into school for the day. Get lots hellos, hugs and high fives.  Every student wants to know, “When are you gonna get me?!?”

8:30am – Meet with a first grader trying to cope with the loss of dad. Work on a memory box in session.

9am – Meet with a fifth grader that just found out she has to switch schools. Talk about the pros and cons and try to give her a more positive outlook.

9:30am – Meet with a 6^th grader that just got an in school suspension for speaking inappropriately to a teacher. Talk about better (more appropriate) ways to express himself if upset.

10:30am – Meet with an 8^th grader that was newly referred for “anger” issues by the teacher.  Start building rapport and trying to assess if “anger” is the problem.

11:30am – Lunch! Eat at your desk while checking emails, calling parents back, and checking in with teachers as they head to the lunch room. Chat with the principal about anything unusual that has happened that week.

12:00pm – Meet with a fourth grader struggling with social skills. Create a social story about how to start a conversation with peers.

12:30pm – Facilitate a fourth grade girls group. Focus of the group is peer relationships as the girls are struggling to get along in class.

1:30pm – Fifth grade teacher requests you speak to her class about bullying. Facilitate a class discussion.

2:30pm – Wrap up your day! Emails, follow up with parents regarding any concerns, follow up with teachers, complete daily documentation.

3pm – School’s out and the day is complete. End the day as it was started, with goodbyes, hugs and high fives. All is well in the busy day of a school counselor.

The post A Day as a School Counselor first appeared on Lutheran Family and Children's Services of Missouri.

Comprehensive school counseling programs are a vital part of the educational process for all students as they meet the challenges of the 21^st century. Not only do they help to increase student achievement, but professional school counselors serve as a much-needed resource for students, parents, teachers and administrators. Here are just a few examples of the contributions made by professional school counselors in schools today:

1. School counselors are actively engaged in helping students examine their abilities, strengths, interests and talents.
2. School counselors work in a partnership with parents as they encounter the challenges of raising children in today’s world.
3. School counselors focus on positive ways to enhance students’ social/personal, educational and career development.
4. School counselors work with teachers and other educators to provide an educational system where students can realize their potential and set healthy, realistic and optimistic aspirations.

National School Counseling Week will be celebrated from February 6-10, 2017. The celebration highlights the tremendous impact school counselors have in helping students achieve school success and plan for a career. To learn more about the school counseling services provided at Lutheran Family and Children’s Services, visit our School Counseling page, send an email or call 314/787-5100 or 866/326-LFCS.

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LFCS School Counselors will celebrate this special week in a wide variety of ways to focus awareness on their unique contributions to daily life in their schools. If you are looking for way to participate in the festivities, here are a few ideas:

1. Create informative and encouraging bulletin boards
2. Brainstorm with student groups toward solving classroom conflicts to school-wide assemblies
3. Have PSO sponsored snacks
4. Reward students with a celebratory lunch for achieving goals

Kids experience a lot of stressors these days, and the issues they face, the people they live and go to class with, and the situations they are involved in can all act as distractions to learning.  LFCS School Counselors engage with school staff, parents, and students to reduce the effect of these stressors and create the best learning environment possible in order to further student success. Our 42 masters-level clinicians can be found in a variety of environments. We are in over 50 private, Lutheran, and public schools across the St. Louis area and working with hundreds of students from preschool-ages through high school seniors. To learn more about the LFCS School Counseling program click here or call 314-787-5100.

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During one-on-one visits, an LFCS LifeSkills Facilitator spent time with Eric working on positive self-talk. When Eric would say something negative, it would be pointed out and he would be asked to change it into a positive statement. He really enjoyed this, and over time, he was saying more and more positive statements about himself. Near the end of his 90-day one-on-one coaching, LFCS received an email from Eric’s teacher saying, “You are awesome! Thanks for all you’ve done with Eric. I’ve seen a change in his attitude toward school. Did he tell you he made homework club? He turned in EVERY homework assignment for the whole month!” Other teachers he worked with made similar comments. Eric was really proud of himself, too.

By the end of the thirteen meeting program, Eric had achieved both of his program goals! His grades were improving and he was making more friends in class. Overall, Eric was just one of the many students who really benefits from the extra support to achieve academic, behavioral and social goals in school.

To learn more about STEPUp, click here.

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